Beautiful sound
by roxyfire57
Summary: AU Androids attack. Gohan and Vegeta are the only survivors of the androids attack, and they have to work together to defeat the mechanical monsters. But with Gohan going through his teenage years and Vegeta mourning the passing of his wife and son, can the duo balance out their feelings and save the world?
1. Chapter 1

**AU Androids attack. Onehot (maybe, depends)**

"...Bulma?"

Vegeta's voice was unnaturally soft, as he cradled the limp body in his hands. "Bulma? Are you okay?"

"Bulma? Can you open your eyes? Say something?" He rocked her gently from side to side, stroking her cheek. Her blue hair was streaked red and her clothes were soaked with blood, her lips slightly open. Her arm was outstretched when he found her, as if she was reaching for something before the roof collapsed.

Vegeta ran his fingers through her thick, matted hair and whispered softly in her ear. "I'm sorry. Please wake up."

Her eyes remained closed, as the sun set behind her.

The prince lay her down on an unscorched patch of grass. He stood up, scanning the area for something-anything! A sign that someone else was alive. he turned to face what was left of Capsule Corporation, now reduced to a heap of rubble.

There was a faint ki in the back.

Vegeta rushed over and started clawing through the bricks and pieces of furniture, splintered and smashed. He'd recognize that ki anywhere. _He's still alive. _He tossed aside a large brick, then another, to reveal a small, sobbing child.

He picked Trunks up and held him close to his chest. It was the first time Vegeta has ever held him. "Trunks, it's okay, Daddy's here…" Vegeta whispered, stroking the infant's forehead. he did not know if Trunks understood him, but the child ceased his crying and stared up at his father in large, unblinking eyes.

Trunks shivered against his father's large, warm chest. His leg was twisted in odd angles and there was a nasty cut on his forehead. It didn't look to serious, but Trunks's ki was falling at an incredible speed.

It was only then Vegeta felt something sticky on his hand.

Vegeta looked down-blood. Fresh. He examined Trunks in his arms, and saw. There was a large hole in his stomach, blood was draining from it. "...oh." Vegeta pursed his lips and resisted the urge to cry. He have not shed tears since the episode with Frieza on Namek,a dn he was determined to keep it that way, but…

"Papa."

He stared down in shock. Trunks's blue eyes looked up at him, his bottom lip quivering. Then he opened his mouth and let another small, two-syallable sound come out. "Papa."

His eyes welled up with tears. He had missed Trunks 'first word' or so Bulma put it, but at that time he didn't care. "The brat would be speaking like an adult soon. One or two words in his early days wouldn't make a difference."

He was wrong.

"Papa…" Trunks said again, with significantly more difficulty. Vegeta rocked him slowly. "Shush, Trunks." Trunks pouted-he had no intention on being silenced. "Papa!" he said, with more effort each time.

Vegeta shook his head-'no'. "Save your strength, Trunks." He didn't want him to stop, honestly. He wanted him to say more, to hear his voice. Trunks wouldn't survive the night. That blast in his stomach was fatal-somehow the infant had made it this long. Vegeta wanted to listen to Trunks forever, as if that would make up for the times he didn't.

As if reading his mind, Trunks opened his mouth and gurgled. "L-lo. Lov Papa." he choked out, and started wailing again.

Vegeta felt his heart break. "I love you too." It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard.

Sometime into the night, Trunks stopped crying.

**End.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, this didn't really come out like I expected. That's not a bad thing, though. Just read! It's far longer than the first chapter, that's for sure... Thank you for reading and reviewing (I figured If I thanked you in advance, people would actually review...)**

**This chapter is dedicated to Raos.**

He groaned. The boy turned his head slightly, feeling immense pain shoot up the side of his neck. Slowly he opened his eyes, but promptly shut them again when he was blinded by the white light. He tried to lift his head, eyes still shut, but a light feeling in his head sent him collapsing back onto the soft pillow.

Wait… soft?

Gohan, against his body's will, flipped over and buried his face into the fluffiness. He gave a small squeal of delight and breathed in the scent of home from the pillow, and lied on his stomach for a few minutes, suffocating himself in the temporary and familiar warmth-

-Until he was really suffocating himself. He turned over again, and gasped as air entered his lungs. The demi saiyan squinted against the light as he opened his eyes again, and blinked as his vision slowly returned. It blurred at first, as stars swam in front of him and the colors swirled in his mind.

He lay back on the pillow and he saw that the place wasn't really bright at all.

Gohan was in a cave. It wasn't very large, and the only source of light was the entrance. A bunch of miscellaneous objects and furniture were scattered around the area, and as much as they seemed out of place it brought a certain homey feeling to cover up the coldness that would otherwise be unbearable. He turned his head slightly to the right, and could see a large familiar wooden wardrobe-his wooden wardrobe, in fact. Gohan gasped lightly in surprise to see it here, but then he realised that it was not the only thing of his.

There was also several of his books left in a pile at a corner, as well as the dining table ad chairs from his home. Strangely enough, He could recognize the Brief's belongings, such as the chest of drawers, the refrigerator, and Bulma's mini lab. There were other things, though, like the couch from KAME house that he remembered from his short visit there. Gohan blinked in confusion. Where am I?

"You're awake."

Gohan jerked his head towards his left, but immediately regretted it when hot pain seared through his body, causing him to lie back on the bed. He could make out Vegeta's silhouette as the saiyan prince stood in the entrance of the cave. "...Vegeta?" Gohan rasped out.

"You were out for two days." Vegeta stated, sitting on a stool next to the boy's bed. He placed the back of his hand on Gohan's forehead, before sighing deeply and reaching below the bed to pull out a first aid kit. Gohan watched in interest as the normally emotionless and stoic Vegeta helped him to sit up and rest his head against the headboard of the bed. It was then that Gohan realised that he was bandaged. Everywhere.

Vegeta took Gohan's left arm and started to unwrap the bandages slowly, and redress it. He rubbed a mild ointment on bruises and shallow cuts, but left them unbandaged. Gohan realised that although he was injured almost everywhere, it didn't seem to be more than a few cuts. Some were pretty long and deep, but he figured after the androids he would at least have a broken arm or two-

-Wait, the androids! Gohan scrambled out of bed, well tried to at least. Vegeta grabbed the squirming child by the waist and placed him back onto the bed, growling. "Stop moving, brat."

"Vegeta… The androids! What happened? Where am I? Where is everyone else? Did we win?"

Vegeta looked down at Gohan for a long moment. The saiyan prince felt something in his heart clench seeing the desperate hope in the boy's eyes, something he recognized in himself, for the first time, two days ago. Vegeta sighed and turned away. "Outside," he muttered, watching as Gohan's eyes glanced towards the cave entrance, then back at him.

The saiyan stood up and looked at the boy for a while. Gohan blinked back tears as he sat on the edge of the bed, "outside? Really?"

He watched at Vegeta nodded, slowly as if unsure. Gohan jumped off the bed, ignoring the sharp pain that shot up his leg as he did so, but Vegeta saw him wince. The older frowned as he watched the child walk slowly towards the outside, limping every few steps but refusing to stop.

"Wait." Gohan paused in his tracks and turned back. Vegeta was staring at him deeply with his onyx eyes, contemplating something. Then he held out a small item. Gohan limped back to the prince, to take the object out of his hands, and realised that it was a small stone. It was smooth and flat, but the tip was sharp. Gohan weighed it in his hand for a moment, and noticed that it fit nicely into his palm. "What do I need this for?"

Vegeta did not reply, but went to sit down at the table-his table. Sighing again Vegeta motioned towards the doorway, and Gohan stared at him inquisitively with a question at the tip of his tongue, but bit it back for Vegeta's sake. He knew the saiyan did not feel like talking now.

Gohan staggered outside, beyond Vegeta's scrutinizing view, and stopped short at the sight. It was in a row-neat and precise, like one would expect from a battalion of soldiers, brave and strong. There was not one out of place, the edges were carved with perfection and the hard end of the stone was anchored into the ground, under the soft sunlight that streamed through the network of leaves, casting an almost magical glow on the stones.

And instantly Gohan knew this was what Vegeta was talking about.

It was a row of tombstones. He gasped. Gohan walked over slowly to the first one in the row, and saw, carved intricately with royal cursive script, was the name 'Krillin'. There was a mound of soft tampered dirt just beyond it, and staring at this sight Gohan felt tears spring up in his eyes. "Krillin?" He squeaked, and as if in reply a warm breeze blew past the child.

Gohan blinked twice. He moved on to the next stone, which wrote 'Yamcha'. Gohan sighed. "You too?" The demi saiyan dropped his head and dragged himself to the one beside it, to read the word 'Chiaotzu'.

He was mildly surprised, actually, that Vegeta had done this. Gohan looked around, and noticed the silence. It was oddly quiet for nature, but Gohan could hear the distant chirping of crickets and the rustling of leaves as the wind weaved it's way through the treetops. The twigs cracked under his bare feet as the boy walked over to the fourth stone, written 'Tien'. He frowned, and looked down, tears threatening to spill from the sides of his eyes.

'Piccolo.' At this point the demi saiyan felt light headed and collapsed onto the grass, sobbing softly. "Piccolo.. no…" His mentor, trusted friend, ally, second father. Never mind that the namekian was an entirely different species, Piccolo was always there to protect him. He would even give up his life to protect his protege. But now…

Gohan trembled as he cried silently. He gripped the roots of the small plants and crushed them in the palm of his free hand, the other hand gripping the stone from Vegeta so tightly that it dug into his flesh and drew blood. Still shaking Gohan stood up and limped towards the next two tombstones, and his eyes widened. 'Kakarot/Goku', the first one was carved. 'Chi Chi', was the second.

He felt weak in the knees and fell to the ground. "Mummy… Daddy…" Gohan sobbed. Goku had died earlier in the year due to a heart virus, and was buried outside the Son house. But it seemed Vegeta had moved him. His entire body wrecked as Gohan rested his head against the rounded edge of his mother's stone plate and cried. "Mummy.. I'm sorry, I couldn't protect you… Mummy."

He laid there for a while. Gohan's head was flooded with memories and regret, especially the latter. "I wasn't there… I'm sorry…" he whispered. He brushed his fingers against the smooth stone and felt the carvings where Vegeta had indented the names in, and blinked.

From the corner of his eyes, beyond the tears, he saw two more headstones. Gohan forced himself to get up and staggered over to the last two names, and stopped short.

'Trunks'. 'Bulma'. "Oh." Gohan breathed, unable to register in his mind fully the names. Trunks, Bulma and Vegeta's son, right? He's dead too? But… how? The demi saiyan wiped the tears away with the back of his torn sleeve. Gohan knelt down and sighed longingly. "Sorry Trunks. You died when you were one, you never got to experience the world…" he whispered.

What was that? Gohan carefully picked up the stone and turned it over, gasping in surprise. Vegeta had carved a short paragraph behind Trunks's tombstone. 'Son. I have never held you, or told you that I have loved you, until it was too late. I will avenge you. I am sorry. I love you. -V'

Gohan placed the stone back into it's position, numb from the words. Vegeta was not a man of affection, but Gohan knew that truly meant something. Absentmindedly he removed Bulma's stone and flipped it over as well. 'Woman, Bulma. I'm sorry. I promise you would not die in vain. I will destroy the androids. Take care of Trunks in the Otherworld. I love you. -V'

Gohan didn't realise he had started crying again.

It was then he remembered the stone. Gohan lifted up the small rock, blood tinted at the corner from his palm, and blinked in surprise. It wasn't just a stone. It's shape had a purpose, like… like a chisel of some sort. yes! It was a chisel, for carving.

Gohan turned towards the tombstones and finally realised what it was for.

He wrote something for every one of them. Even though he know each and every one of the fighters on a close level, they were his friends. They were his father's friends. And he was determined not to let anyone's memories die out.

'Krillin. Thanks for being my father's best friend, and being a great friend of mine. Remember the trip to planet Namek? Even though you died in the end, you went all the way to protect me. I will avenge you, I promise.'

'Yamcha, you're a good friend and ally, and I won't let you die in vain'

'Chiaotzu. I don't really know you, but I will defeat the androids for everyone.'

'Tien. I don't really know you either. But I will avenge your memory.'

'Piccolo.' Gohan paused. 'You're a great mentor, and my first teacher. You're like my second father, and a great friend. You sacrificed yourself to save me many times, and although at first I was afraid of you you helped me to be independent and overcome those fears. I would never have made it this far without you. Thank you for always being there, and I won't let the androids get away with this. Don't worry Piccolo.'

Gohan sniffed and pushed back tears. 'Dad. Even though you died because of a heart virus, I know you're still with me. And you must feel terrible for not being able to defeat the androids. I love you Daddy and I'm going to avenge everyone. You're a great dad and the best fighter in the world, and I know you're not going to stop training in the Otherworld. So I need you to help me. I will be able to make it because I know you'll always be supporting me, Dad. I love you.'

He started crying softly. 'Mummy, I love you. I'm sorry I couldn't protect you. I promised I would after daddy died, but I wasn't strong enough. Don't worry Mummy, I will get stronger so I can defeat the androids and save everyone. I miss you a lot, and I know it's been really hard on you ever since Daddy died, but at least now you're happy and safe with him in the Otherworld. Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself now. And I know you don't trust Vegeta but he won't let anything happen to me, I know it, and he's going to take care of me as well. I love you, Mummy, and I will avenge you.'

Gohan trembled and hugged himself, sobbing. He looked up towards the cave entrance and saw Vegeta there, watching him. The demi-saiyan crawled over and sat next to the saiyan prince. Neither of them said anything for a long while-they just indulged in silent companionship. Gohan, for the first time, realised why Vegeta never talked much.

When you're quiet, you can hear everything around you clearly. He blinked upwards towards the sky and saw a bird flitting overhead. Gohan sighed softly and leaned back against the cool outer wall of the cave, not talking.

Vegeta looked down at the boy seated next to him, and placed a hand gently on his head. Gohan looked up in mild surprise, wiped away a tear, and managed a small smile.


	3. Chapter 3

**Please R&R!**

Gohan couldn't sleep.

When he closed his eyes, he remembered the distant sounds of the explosions and gunfires. He remembered the crimson blood that splattered across the pavement as bodies fell one after another. He remembered the smell of smoke as fires burned skyscrapers to the ground, making tall structures collaspe and crush those beneath them-it could be considered either a blessing, to end their suffering, or a curse to be crushed slowly by the tremendous weight. He remembered the taste of his blood and sweat as he ran and tried to avoid the ki blasts bombarding him from ever direction. He remembered the eyes-her eyes, of the little girl as she lay under the rubble.

He remembered as she lay unmoving, her blood collecting at a small puddle under her, and he feared she would be dead.

He remembered how she looked up at him with large pleading eyes, her mouth opening slightly as hoarse words choked out, interrupted by coughs and ragged breathing.

He remembered how she begged him to do it-"Y-you can b-bla...blast m-m-me... p-lea...se... i-it... h-h-ur..ts..."

He remembered how he raised his arm, closed his eyes, and fired.

Everything else was a blur after that. He vaguely felt strong arms wrap around him and haul him away, shouting something he could not comprehend. The noise and motion blurred at the back of his mind, the pain wracking through his body was numbed.

Vegeta sat across the demi saiyan, watching him toss and turn in his bed. He frowned and tugged at the bandages around his arm-the both of them were lucky to have escaped this attack, especially with unresponsive Gohan as a dead weight.

The saiyan prince sighed and moved a stool next to the bed. He sat down slowly, pain shooting up his legs with every slow step. Gohan felt a warm presence and looked up to peer at Vegeta questioningly.

"Sleep," he ordered.

Gohan whimpered and fidgeted under the sheets, the dark eyes of the girl flashing through his mind once more. "I... can't."

Vegeta said nothing, but gave the younger an intense stare.

Gohan squirmed under the saiyan's look. "I just... can't."

"You never forget your first."

Gohan looked up. "Huh?"

"Your first kill." Vegeta shifted in his seat, watching the emotions flash across the younger's face-pain, regret, sorrow, shock, acceptance.

"I..."

"My first was a small alien child, purple with green spots over his body. He had three webbed fingers on each hand and large grey eyes. He was crying and yelling something I didn't understand, and I supposed he was my age at that time, but I fired."

Gohan looked down. "You... killed him... why?"

"Frieza." Vegeta spat out that name in disgust.

"Did you... enjoy it?"

Vegeta growled, making the child shudder. "We were a warrior race that took pride in defeating worthy opponents. We did not slaughter millions of innocents for... fun. Frieza corrupted our race and made us do his bidding."

Gohan whimpered at the prince's dark look. "Sorry," he muttered.

"Close your eyes," Vegeta let out a heavy sigh.

Gohan shrugged mentally but did as he was told, not wanting to anger the saiyan prince further. They both had a rough day, Vegeta in particular, who had taken quite a beating as himself stayed in shock on the sidelines.

The demi saiyan let out a contented sigh when he felt a wave of heat wash over him. He peeked an eye open to see Vegeta's ki radiating over both of them, but the elder saiyan growled and he shut his eyes quickly. Perhaps he didn't want anyone to witness even an act of concern, Gohan thought.

A low rumbling noise brought Gohan out of his thoughts. His eyes closed, he listened, and he realised it was a soft melody full of words from another language, and it calmed him immensely. Gohan let out a small sigh and tilted his hed towards the noise-the language it seemed familiar to him somehow, and was comforting.

Gohan peeked open an eye to see Vegeta glaring at him.

"Sorry..." he muttered. There was a tense silence in the air.

"Was that..." Gohan started, but didn't dare continue.

"A saiyan lullaby." Vegeta murmured so softly Gohan didn't think he said anything.

"I sang it to him before."

There was no need to mention who 'he' was-Gohan's heart pounded against his ears when Vegeta gave a longing sigh. His eyes were full of emotions-regret, guilt and sorry.

"Sorry," the demi saiyan blurted out, before he remembered Vegeta was not a big fan of apologies, and bit his lip.

Vegeta said nothing.

"Did... did he like it?" He asked hesitantly, and instantly knew he poured salt in the wound when Vegeta's gaze dropped to the floor and his shoulders slumped. He looked... sad. Defeated. Devastated.

"It stopped him from crying."

"I-" Gohan opened his mouth again, but then closed it when he realised nothing he said would comfort the dejected prince.

"Close your eyes," Vegeta repeated, worn out.

Gohan compiled, and he was soon lulled to sleep by the saiyan prince's low, comforting voice, giving Trunks a silent prayer in his father's stead.

And for a moment, Vegeta saw, in the sleeping Gohan, his infant son that he had never acknowledged until the very end, and vowed to protect him.


	4. Chapter 4

**You know what my favorite genre is? Adventure.**

**You know my second favorite? Mystery.**

**How can one NOT love mystery? Just amazing, just incredible... the suspense with every page, every chapter...**

**Well. Go on and read.**

"Vegeta!"

The saiyan prince howled wordlessly, his nails ripping through the thick bandages on his arms, and the sloppy stitches tore. The wounds ran deep, and blood oozed from the gashes and onto the now unnecessary strips of cloth that still remained attached to his bulging muscles.

Gohan's eyes widened, nothing he has said has gotten through to the elder saiyan yet, and choked words refused to make his way out of his mouth as he watched Vegeta strain and attempt to break the thick heavy chains that held him. He was starting to regret securing the unstable man to the cave-he didn't seem very secure, and although the chains were holding Gohan wasn't sure the cave walls would. It was, after all, just rock. Not metal.

Not metal. Unlike Them.

Oh, he wished They were made of rock. Gohan could shatter boulders with his fists and collapse mountains with his ki, but the androids he could not even dent.

Vegeta screamed - yes, screamed - so heartbrokenly that Gohan felt his shatter.

It was a normal day. Normal consisted of running through the fallen structures of skyscrapers while desperately dodging ki blasts, before (or after, depending on the day) being plummeted to the ground mercilessly, and having to balance between saving each other's lives and landing at least a decent hit in. Normal was knowing they had no chance of winning, yet showing up every battle, each for their own reasons - Gohan hoped to stall some time to allow some humans to escape, and Vegeta found that unnecessary (they were going to die, anyways) but hoped to be beaten to near death in order to make a miraculous recovery and regain his strength.

That had been normal for the past year. Vegeta and Gohan had grown pretty close, and even the saiyan prince had to admit that the Gohan only other person who had managed to get within his personal boundaries (not by much, though) other than Bulma. Gohan had found some sort of father-son bond developing between them.

Normal, that day was, until Vegeta ceased.

Gohan had been dodging 18's blasts, and had narrowly avoided being crushed by a car. He was bleeding everywhere, broken bones in multiple places - and Vegeta was just standing there.

He didn't even dodge when the ki blast came flying at him, when he crashed into the building, when it came crumbling down.

He froze entirely when Gohan ran over, he stared into the distance in a comatose state, and, a complete opposite of what had happened over a year before (chapter 3) it was the demi-saiyan's turn to drag the prince away, far away from the battlefield.

Away from the androids, however, he started to rouse, and grew more agitated than ever. Ki flaring, the ascended prince fought to get away from Gohan, towards the suicidal area once more, and had to be subdued (Bulma had apparently a very potent sedative developed while with Vegeta over the 3 years, hidden in a medical kit in case of emergencies) by force.

And the moment they entered the cave, Vegeta passed out entirely, which was also out of the ordinary. Usually it was Gohan who fainted first.

And, to prevent a repeat of Vegeta going ballistic, the chains were used.

Unfortunately, Vegeta didn't seem to take that very well either.

"I… I saw him…"

Gohan froze. Vegeta curled up in a ball, shivering, and he choked back on tears, blood had formed in a small pool around him, "Go-Gohan, I… I saw HIM."

He gulped. The demi-saiyan saw angry Vegeta often. Angry, frustrated Vegeta he could deal with.

Crying Vegeta? He was not sure.

Gohan had seen Vegeta cry once only, back on Namek, while he was on the verge of death.

"Vegeta? You… you saw… who?"

"I saw…"

The saiyan prince drew in a sharp breath, winced as he felt his ribs dig deeper into his lungs, he didn't bother to set it back. He shook his head painfully.

"I saw Trunks."

Gohan heart stopped beating.

"You saw... Trunks?"

There was a pause. Vegeta nodded slowly.

"Vegeta…" Gohan sighed, "Trunks… Trunks is dead."

He swore he heard the saiyan prince whimper.

"He is," the younger saiyan sat cross-legged in front of the prince, "Vegeta, he died last year. You were seeing things."

He shook his head numbly, Vegeta curled up tighter. "I saw HIM," he insisted.

There was an explosion in the distance.

Gohan shot up, He shot a glance at Vegeta, who seemed too depressed to be fighting anytime soon, "Stay," he ordered, and the saiyan said nothing. Gohan shook his head sympathetically and flew away.

He clutched his broken arm, dodging a few blasts and limped under a building. Gohan panted, sweat pouring from him, blood stained his shirt, he could not sense the androids-they had no ki. All the more cold and inhumane they were.

Shaking, his legs unsteady, he let out a ragged breath,

He looked around, darted across to duck under another fallen building, Searching his surroundings frantically, panting…

There.

A flash of lavender.

Lavender?! It couldn't be… could it?!

_"I saw Trunks."_

_Gohan heart stopped beating._

_"You saw... Trunks?"_

_There was a pause. Vegeta nodded slowly._

_"Vegeta…" Gohan sighed, "Trunks… Trunks is dead."_

_He swore he heard the saiyan prince whimper._

_"He is," the younger saiyan sat cross-legged in front of the prince, "Vegeta, he died last year. You were seeing things."_

_He shook his head numbly, Vegeta curled up tighter. "I saw HIM," he insisted._

Gohan gritted his teeth, ignoring the pain coursing through his blood. He would get to the bottom of this.

For Vegeta.

The androids had moved, he was sure, as there were no explosions in the nearby area. The demi saiyan ran (limped) to where he spotted a dash of lavender, just behind the fallen car. There was nothing.

He growled in frustration, 'probably a trick of light', he thought-

-Gohan froze.

His breath hitched, he stared at the shard of broken glass. Broken glass that reflected a pair of striking blue eyes.

_"I saw Trunks."_

Gohan whirled around to face an empty street.

**Hey guys, please leave a review! I needya know what you think :) I love Trunks. My fav little character, do you guys want him in this story? Well, I needya hear from ya readers! Sorry for the haitus, I'm back and ready to write!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Woohoo! Love your responses... Trunks, hm... Is he real? An illusion? A trick from the androids? Or a cryptic message from the otherworld?**

"I saw him," he raved on, "I really did…"

Gohan didn't know how Vegeta managed to free himself.

"...I know you don't believe me. I don't believe it either. He's alive, I tell you, out there…"

Nothing the prince said really registered in his brain, images flashed into his head as his mind throbbed, trying against his will to comprehend what had happened out there.

"...But he was really there… I'd recognize my son anywhere! He has that lavender hair, I'd be able to spot it from a mile away…"

_There._

_A flash of lavender._

_Lavender?! It couldn't be… could it?!_

He had seen Trunks once only, when his father was still alive. They had went to visit Bulma, Vegeta had been off into space then… a month old, and he had lavender (not purple) hair on his head.

Unmistakable.

"...And eyes, blue eyes… I don't think you met him before, have you? He has really bright blue eyes, like his mother... "

_His breath hitched, he stared at the shard of broken glass. Broken glass that reflected a pair of striking blue eyes._

Blue eyes.

He remembered how much Trunks resembled his parents, how the child had Bulma's striking blue and sharp features and eye shape of Vegeta's, how he was a somewhat odd and adorable mixture of them both, and he remembered thinking that the child would grow up to be quite a little terror, given the personality of both his parents.

He was wrong.

Was he?

"And," Vegeta hadn't stopped speaking yet, he was getting breathless, "It's unbelievable, but Trunks was there! It had to be Trunks, and not some other human. But he didn't have a tail, his was removed at birth… or can it grow back? I don't know, mine never did…" The elder saiyan blabbed.

Gohan's head spun. "Vegeta…" he muttered, clutching his head with makeshift bandages on his hands.

Vegeta paused and turned to Gohan, a puzzled look on his face, as if it was the first time registering his presence. Gohan had passed out, beaten at the mouth of the cave and had woken up in his bed with bandages and aches, to the voice of Vegeta's frantic voice.

The prince was so frazzled, it was slightly, no-very, uneasing…

"You… you don't believe me." Vegeta's shoulders slumped dejectedly, and if he had a tail it would have been tucked between his legs. His eyes lost its previous hopeful glimmer, "I don't believe myself either… I was probably hallucinating and-"

"I believe you," he rasped out, Gohan eased himself off his bed but collapsed back on the mattress, "I believe you saw Trunks."

There was a pause, a thick tension in the air, and Vegeta ran the thoughts like clockwork in his head, waiting for an explanation, from himself or from Gohan, that he was not crazy...

"I…" Gohan closed his eyes, the scene swimming in his eyes, "I saw him too."

The prince froze.

"W-what?"

"I saw Trunks," Gohan hesitated, "well, not really. I saw a flash of lavender…"

"And…"

Gohan gulped, trying to ignore the painful, desperate hope that burst up in Vegeta's wide eyes (he could have sworn he saw a tear).

"Blue eyes. Like Bulma's. A reflection."

"You… you saw him too…. He's alive..?"

Hurtful, thick emotion, heartbreaking anxiousness.

"I don't know," Gohan answered truthfully.

There was a short silence that spanned the cave, each to their own thoughts.

"He… he would be two, if he is alive," Vegeta started slowly, "not… old enough for the battlefield."

Gohan remained silent.

"But.. fast…. like a saiyan? Probably, looking for us…? Saiyans… can naturally de-detect lifeforms…. Higher level ones, without a scouter…. but… not very well…" Vegeta paused, and deliberately paced.

"But if he is alive… he would come looking… because we have naturally high power levels…. while fighting… And.."

"Vegeta," Gohan interrupted, and his eyes shot up to look at the demi saiyan.

Gohan bit his lip, and shook his scruffy, uncombed hair. "You… I mean… Isn't he… outside?"

Outside.

The older saiyan let his gaze drift to the double row of tombstones that lay outside the cave.

From behind them, for the first time in a year, the broken radio whirred to life.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys! I updated a new chapter. (Every one is themed on sound, though some more subtle). Yay! **

Gohan blasted it once. Vegeta, twice.

The duo panted - they were weak, and the ki blasts took quite a bit from their energy, as they stared at the black scorch marks that was once their broken radio.

Gohan was a hundred percent certain that thing couldn't have worked anymore. He had seen Vegeta tear it apart to get at the wires so he could patch up their generator.

This was starting to really creep him out.

Gohan sank to the floor, a mixture of sweat and blood pooling at his feet, he looked over at Vegeta, who was deep in thought. It wasn't anything new, but what disturbed him was the heartbroken, desperate look on the elder saiyan's face.

Vegeta's ki rose erratically, his gaze darting frantically from the mouth of the cave to the scorch mark that, once a radio. The elder saiyan clenched his fists at his side and growled ferally, his canines flashing - he reminded Gohan of a wild animal, injured but ready to attack to defend his territory. He stood up, shaky legs, and took a step forward towards the elder saiyan.

Vegeta tensed, and, sparing Gohan a last look, dashed out of the cave.

The demi-saiyan was thrown back by the sudden force. Gohan blinked once, twice, he wasn't sure how Vegeta moved that quickly having two broken legs, but he sure wasn't going to be left behind. Gritting his teeth he darted after his adoptive father.

Vegeta hadn't gone far. He sat in front of Trunk's tombstone, defeated and silent.

He wasn't sure what would hurt most. Seeing his son, his infant son where he last left him - just in front of him, two feet under - or not finding him at all.

The suspense was killing him.

Gohan sat slowly, careful not to put too much pressure on his the right side of broken pelvis where it had been smashed in. He took a quick assessment of Vegeta's injuries - the prince had many broken bones, a snapped rib or several, judging about how he winced when he breathed, a dislocated hip from his limp, and a dented skull - he could see where it had caved in from his position, at the back of his head. Gohan pushed down his nausea. Vegeta didn't seem to notice the extent of his injuries - it seemed like a common thing to him.

Maybe it had been.

Gohan shivered darkly as Frieza's image flashed across his mind.

The demi-saiyan, on the other hand, was not used to this, it was the first time he had woken up in the cave not on his bed, and without an insane amount of bandages and gauze wrapped around him. Vegeta didn't seem like he was in the state to tend to anyone, let alone himself.

Vegeta paused, his fingers brushing over the old soil, now mushed over with a thin layer of moss and new shoots. There was a single flower, a dandelion, if he was not mistaken, that sprouted in the middle of the grave. Vegeta brushed against the flower and the white feathery fluff blew into the find, running all over the place. Gohan caught one as it landed on the tip of his nose and he sneezed, it was sent flying.

The saiyan said nothing, he looked over to his younger comrade who was watching the fluff in excitement. Vegeta almost smiled. He remembered Trunks, tottering around in his two stubby legs, trying to clap his hands over a small dandelion puff as they drifted around him.

Almost.

He heard the unmistakable sound of laughter. Gohan was laughing.

"What?"

The demi-saiyan stilled, the first calm, coherent word from Vegeta.

"It's so strange, isn't it. The world is ending and I'm playing with dandelion."

The saiyan was silent for a while. "The world is ending," he added on, "it has been for the past year, hasn't it. We run from the inevitable, at first terrified of the consequences... then later on when the sky is still crumbling but not close to falling we wonder why it hasn't, and we wonder for a little while if the world is really ending, or if it is all just mind games," Vegeta paused, "and after a while a false sense of security settles in because we're not close to dying, but then the planet burns and we still find ourselves lying."

Gohan is silent.

"And when this planet finally goes up in smoke we wonder why it took so long, because all that waiting and sacrifices we did and made all wasn't worth it."

The puzzle pieces clicked. This was the first time Gohan's world is being destroyed.

But not for Vegeta.

"We're in a false sense of security, hope that things will turn around." Vegeta laughed insanely. "It's not going to."

"But..."

Gohan looked up.

"We might as well enjoy the calm before the storm."

Gohan cracked a smile. He liked Vegeta. The Prince was practical, he never sugar coated things and he never lied. Gohan was actually glad he was with him, instead of Goku... he knew his father. Gohan was used to his father's energy and optimism, and how it rubbed off on everyone, and his win-win attitude - but Goku wouldn't be able to handle this, Goku was grown up protected by his friends and he was used to be the centre of attraction, the hero. Should he be here Gohan feared the earth-saiyan would get himself killed the quickest, the first to jump into danger and the first to die. Goku never understood consequences.

Vegeta wasn't as reckless. He bid his time and knew how to plan his escapes. There was always a plan B for Vegeta, for Goku there was never even a plan A. All this while Gohan figured out how the prince worked - like a strategist, bases set and ready for backup...sure, the recent turn of events about Trunks never ended well, but that was understandable. Goku, however, went into everything with brute strength and a thick head. King Piccolo? Fight him. Radditz? Fight him. Saiyans? Fight them. Always the same plan, get them to be allies or send them away. It was this plan that ended up kicking him back in the ass.

After all, it was Goku who spared the life of the creator of the androids. More than once, in fact.

Vegeta would never make this mistake. Gohan had always admired his father's mercy, but that was in a perfect world. In this world...

He looked at Vegeta. "I'm glad you're here with me."

The saiyan looked down at Trunk's grave. He wouldn't dig it up. "Hn."

The world stayed silent.

The calm before the storm.


	7. Chapter 7

He cracked his eyes open, the bright sunlight streaming painfully into his eyes, and he shut them, wincing.

Gohan groaned.

"Hey, you alright?"

A girl.

Gohan forced open an eyelid, squinting against the light, and met a pair of blue eyes.

"Trunks!"

His eyes widened in shock and he shot up, before collapsing at the sudden movement.

"Don't move!"

A girl's voice.

Last he checked, Gohan was sure Trunks was most definitely NOT a girl. His head swam. What happened?

"Are you alright? You were hurt real bad." Gohan felt someone's cool hands against his burning forehead, and hair brush against his nose. Whoever this was, she smells nice, Gohan thought.

"My name's Videl. You might wanna sit up slowly..."

Her hands on his shoulders, supporting Gohan as he sat up. His eyes adjusted slowly to the surroundings, a dilapidated, crumbling building.

He remembered being knocked unconscious by android 18.

"I'm Gohan," the demi-saiyan informed. He might as well tell his rescuer his name.

Videl had thick raven hair pulled together messily in two ponytails, and bright blue eyes. She had many cuts and bruises on her face, dirt and dried blood matted in her hair.

"Thanks for saving me," he grinned, although it hurt.

Where was Vegeta?

"I didn't save you," she shrugged, "someone brought you here and told me to take care of you. He didn't leave a name."

What? Gohan blinked in surprise. Why would Vegeta bring him here, instead of back at the cave?

"Did that guy have really black hair that looks like a flame, and dark eyes?"

Videl thought for a moment, then shook her head.

Gohan's eyes bugged out. "What? How?"

Something struck him.

"Did this guy... you know, by any chance..."

Gohan gulped.

"Did my rescuer have... blue eyes? And..."

Videl regarded him eagerly.

"And... You know, blue eyes... and lavender hair?"

"Yea, why?"


	8. Chapter 8

**OMG Guys! I'm so glad you guys like this story! It was originally never meant to go this far, I just got so-ooo carried away and... now we're here! Thank you everyone! For supporting this fanfiction! I love you guys! Feel free to leave any suggestions and/or comments in the review, or just PM me.**

**I honestly love the mystery aspect of the story. What do you guys think? I have always loved stories that keep me in suspense and make your brain hurt...**

**Anyways, next chapter! (I update a lot when I'm in a good mood, when there isn't much homework... ugh, homework...)**

"How old was he? This guy?"

Videl shrugged. "I dunno. A teenager, from the looks of it."

Gohan paled. _A teenager? Surely it wasn't Trunks..._ but he had seen enough weird things to be able to believe it.

"Are you okay?"

Gohan's head snapped up. He gazed into Videl's warm eyes, and relaxed at her soft touch. "Hm. Yea."

She smiled breathtakingly, and started to comb out his hair with her fingers, gently untangling the raven strands and stroking gently. She was careful to avoid the wounds that were raw and painful - she was amazed at Gohan's healing ability. If she didn't know better, she'd say he was an alien! Gohan closed his eyes and sunk into her arms, purring softly.

He remembered his mother and father would do the same to him, when he was younger, and later on Vegeta, when Gohan got restless in his nightmares.

"Are you alone too?"

"Hm?" Gohan opened his eyes and gazed up.

"My father died at the hands of those androids," the raven haired girl bit her lip.

"I'm sorry," Gohan instinctively snuggled into Videl, trying to comfort her.

"My... my father died before that, and my mother and friends were killed by the androids too..." Gohan sighed, "but a... well... someone's been taking care of me... one of my father's... friends. He's like my adoptive father now, I guess," there was a pause, "I got separated from him a while ago."

Videl stopped stroking his hair, which almost made Gohan whimper.

"Let's go," she declared, standing up.

Gohan scrambled to his feet, "what?"

"To find your adoptive father, who else?"

Gohan's eyes widened. "Huh?"

Videl turned, "I know it's hard to be alone. You're probably missing him. Don't you want to find your adoptive father? I know I would, if he's still alive." She wiped away a tear he couldn't see.

The demi saiyan pursed his lips. _He couldn't sense Vegeta's ki._

"Right. Let's go." _Maybe he's hiding it._


	9. Chapter 9

"Hey, are you alright?"

Vegeta remained silent, arms protectively wrapping around the little bundle he had against his chest, his gaze fixated on the young man's dark silhouette against the light.

The teenager turned to stare at the saiyan briefly, his sharp blue eyes flashing once in the dark, and then continued to survey the damage outside of the dilapidated building they were in. So much like home.

He sensed the tension. "I'm not here to harm you," he said quickly.

Vegeta stayed quiet. He brought the little bundle closer, his ki glowing slightly, warm.

"We should look for Gohan. I left him with some girl he'd be safe with..." She wasn't just some girl, the young man knew, but he wasn't going to reveal too much.

For the first time, Vegeta responded, a raspy, tired yes from his throat.

A small fluffy lavender tail snaked it's way from his arms and wrapped itself on Vegeta's wrist.


	10. Chapter 10

Gohan pushed her behind him, trembling but standing brave, poised in a battle stance.

Videl squeaked at the emotionless, empty stares of the androids. _The blonde one killed my father._

The demi-saiyan shivered at the emptiness next to him. He didn't fight on his own. No, he fought with his partner, his ally, his adoptive father, his friend. But Vegeta was missing. He didn't like facing the enemy alone. He wasn't used to protecting, he was used to being protected. It was now Videl crouched defenseless behind Gohan, waiting to be defended, instead of Gohan behind Vegeta.

17 and 18 cocked their heads, their attention momentarily attracted by the shivering girl behind their opponent, but them back to Gohan.

"Where's Vegeta?" 17 asked.

Confusion overtook his features. "You didn't kill him?"

"We didn't even see him," 18 scoffed, "since that time he 'freaked out' during our battle."

This was worse. If the androids weren't responsible for Vegeta's disappearance, who was?

They grinned maliciously. "Fight us, kid."

No. He couldn't.

Not without Vegeta. Gohan didn't know what to do. Who should he aim for? **What** should he aim for? What battle stance should he take? Should they battle here? Should he go all out or try to conserve his energy? Was it a fight or flight situation? And two against one? Was that even legal? Crap! Vegeta made all the decisions! He just followed!

Videl whimpered behind him.

Flight. Definitely a flight situation. Gohan couldn't fight with her here.

Still tense, he backed away slowly, and got close enough to whisper into Videl's ear.

"Cover your eyes when I say so."

"Wha-" she started, but was interrupted.

"NOW! SOLAR FLARE!" Arms extended, palms open, he squinted his eyes shut and let loose a large, blinding ki blast meant to temporarily blind the enemy. Hearing indignant yells and crys of frustration from the androids he figured he worked it right, and Gohan wrapped an arm around Videl and took off.


	11. Chapter 11

She screamed.

Gohan barreled through the wall of an old and crumbling building, shielding Videl with his back, and he tumbled into the rubble, still clutching on to his wriggling passenger. He hissed as his raw wound from one of the blasts burned at his back - his solar flare ignited panic and sparked rage, causing the androids to fire random blasts in all directions.

The moment his back hit the ground, she tore out of his arms, shrieking, and scrambled out of the rubble.

"Y-y-you..."

Gohan looked up, pained, "Videl...? Are you al-"

"YOU'RE LIKE THEM!" She cried in horror, stumbling backwards.

"Y-you... can do that weird... blasty thingy... and you can.. fly! And-and the light shows! T-they blow things up!"

Gohan frowned, "Let me ex-"

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" She cried, clawing at her pigtails, her hand scratching at her large stained shirt, "YOU'RE JUST LIKE THOSE MURDERERS, AREN'T YOU?! YOU SADISTIC CREEPS AND YOUR DESTRUCTIVE BLASTS!"

Gohan winced, she had a piercing voice and her inane screeching was almost unbearable.

"Did... did you help them? Did... were you the one who... who killed my dad?"

He shook his head weakly, his mouth opened into an 'o', Gohan's head throbbed and he felt blood leaking from his forehead. There was a cut from the broken glass through the windows he smashed against, he wasn't used to having a passenger.

Videl winced painfully, Gohan didn't look like a murderer, just a normal kid, just like her... but...

She spared a glance at him, just for a moment, and ran off.


	12. Chapter 12

"We should find Gohan," he started, the young man moved forward silently, until he realized he was not being followed. Sighing exasperatedly he retraced his steps and stared at the saiyan prince, slightly amused, as the latter had all his attention focused on the little bundle he had in his hands. The elder saiyan, sensing the attention, stiffened and growled warningly, crushing the squirming thing to his chest, staring at the young man warningly.

He looked over, thoroughly amused, "you're choking him," the young man smirked, just to see his reaction, and stifled a chuckle as Vegeta went form confused to panicked, and he scooped up the wriggling child and did a basic scan of him - eyes lingering for a moment too long at his abdomen, and, finally satisfied that the little boy was neither hurt nor dying, he bounced the two year old on his hip.

"Gohan?" The teen cocked his head, and Vegeta grunted his affirmative. The young man brushed lavender strands off his face and grinned, leading the way again, this time being followed. He slowed down though, too many times for his taste, as Vegeta demanded routine checks of the tiny child, and he rolled his eyes.

The teen sighed again. "He's going to be fine, Vegeta, the kid just had a tiny scratch, he's alive," he murmured tiredly, they were going nowhere with this! The current cause of worry was a tiny scratch from a passing branch on the child's arm, which caused a whimper from the two year old and a full panic attack from his father.

Vegeta was silent, regarding his two year old with a frown. The teen rolled his eyes, he was better off working alone. Leaving the over-protective Vegeta to his musings he slunk away, intent on seeking out a certain demi saiyan.


	13. Chapter 13

He was walking aimlessly, kicking rocks and pieces of rubble as he trudged through the empty streets. He sensed Videl's ki ahead of him, and heard explosions far behind him, so he knew Videl was safe - for the time being, anyway, and that the androids were content on blowing up buildings for now. He resisted the urge to fly over to the twins and defend what was left of the human population - they were going to die eventually.

They were all going to die.

He couldn't fight alone. He panicked without Vegeta. He couldn't do this. But he didn't know where the saiyan prince was, either. Besides, he was still under a whole lot of stress, given the sudden, what they would call hallucinations of the dead toddler, and Vegeta was majorly freaking out.

Oh great. He thought he saw a flash of lavender. Just great. His mind was going crazy.

Maybe he was being haunted. Maybe he was crazy. Maybe it was the blood loss. Or maybe it was a Trunks from another dimension.

"Ha! I get it. Trunks came over from a parallel universe or whatnot and decided to help us. Maybe he messed up our radio. Maybe he was the one me and Vegeta have been seeing! Oh, oh, maybe he was the one who brought me to Videl! Haha!" Gohan laughed, slightly woozy from the blood loss, he continued walking, spinning slightly.. he felt very very lightheaded. Definitely the blood loss. "Heyy, or what if the Trunks from this dimension is brought back to? What are the odds? Maybe everyone is brought back too! Ha! Maybe..."

He hopped onto a pile of rubble, almost loosing his balance - oh, he felt exceptionally dizzy now - "maybe I'll wake up and see Videl again. Or maybe other dimension Trunks bought other dimension me along! Or maybe I'm dead in the other dimension, and Trunks is the one who lives. Hehe..."

"Hey, are you a psychic?" A certain teen popped up, staring down at the little demi-saiyan.

Gohan fell down.

Trunks hopped down to the pile of rubble, grinning down at the demi saiyan. "You kinda got those right. I'm the other dimension Trunks you were talking about. Nice to see ya, Gohan." He smirked.

The demi saiyan grinned back, now a hundred and two percent sure he was hallucinating, "heh, yea," then fell unconscious.


End file.
